The New York Times (and many other outlets) is reporting that the Lexus CT 200h will start with a €21,000 when it goes on sale in Europe next year.

The natural question turns to how that translates into the North American price—a direct, euro-to-dollar conversion would currently mean a starting MSRP of $28,755 USD, putting it just over the top-end $28,070 USD Toyota Prius V.

However, when you consider the higher price of vehicles in Europe, it starts to tell a different story—some examples:

The Audi A3 2.0 TDI Automatic has a base price of €26,700, or $36,560; in the USA, the same Audi A3 retails for $29,950 USD—meaning that the U.S. price is only 81.9% of the German price.

The base model price of a Toyota Prius is €25,450, or $34,571 USD; in the USA, the top-end Prius is $28,070 USD—the U.S. price is 81.1% of the German price.

The Lexus RX 450h retails for €50,159, or $68,135 USD; in the USA, the RX 450h AWD is $44,275 USD—so the U.S. price is 64.9% of the German price.

Ignoring the RX 450h and sticking with A3/Prius’ 81%, the rumored €21,000 price tag on the CT 200h would translate into a U.S. MSRP of $23,550 USD, a total that’s beyond ridiculous—but then, looking at the price of a German Prius would have ended the argument right there. Could the CT 200h really be less expensive than a Prius in Europe?

(In the end, I think $28,070 in the USA is more likely than €21,000 in Europe.)